ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran has launched a new wave of arrests and executions targeting Kurdish citizens and political prisoners, in what human rights groups describe as an escalating crackdown expected to intensify in the coming weeks.
According to Hengaw, a Kurdish human rights organization that monitors violations across Iran - particularly in Kurdish-majority western regions known as Rojhelat - authorities have recently detained several Kurdish civilians without due process.
The group reported on Sunday that Vahid Boroumand and Ezzedin Pasu-Pish, two Kurds from Piranshahr, and Sayed Anwar Alavi from Oshnavieh in West Azerbaijan province, “have been arrested following raids on their homes by government forces and transferred to an undisclosed location.”
Boroumand, a father of two, reportedly had his home searched and personal belongings confiscated during the arrest “while creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation,” Hengaw stated. Authorities have not disclosed the charges or whereabouts of the detainees.
The arrests come alongside a surge in executions. Iran has executed several political prisoners since the outbreak of war on February 28, with more than 14 others - many accused of collaborating with Israel - reportedly hanged in recent days.
Concerns are mounting over the fate of Naser Bakrzadeh, a 26-year-old Kurdish prisoner whose death sentence has been upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court. Sentenced on charges of “spying for Israel,” Bakrzadeh now faces imminent execution after being notified of the ruling at Urmia Central Prison.
In an open letter as published by the France-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network, Bakrzadeh pleaded for international support, writing: “This may be my last message… I am 26 years old… I was arrested at the height of my life’s hopes and dreams.” He added, “Do not pass by this execution notice easily, today it is my turn, and tomorrow it will be someone else’s.”
Describing the psychological toll, he wrote: “The execution has killed me. It has crushed me. I see my own death every moment, and my family is completely broken.”
In 2025 alone, at least 1,639 people were executed in Iran - a 68 percent increase from the previous year and the highest figure since 1989, according to a joint report by Iran Human Rights and Together Against the Death Penalty organizations.
In the first three months of this year, at least 160 prisoners were executed in Iranian prisons, including 11 Kurds, according to Hengaw, which noted that 12 were hanged for allegations of opposing the government, spying, or offences such as blasphemy.
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